


A Prelude

by kindagay (Rudeandnotginger)



Category: Heathers: The Musical - Murphy & O'Keefe
Genre: F/M, Implied/Referenced Alcohol Abuse/Alcoholism, Physical Abuse
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-10-31
Updated: 2014-10-31
Packaged: 2018-02-23 08:29:13
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 582
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2541080
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Rudeandnotginger/pseuds/kindagay
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>She cranes her neck and catches a glimpse of him.  He looks rough.  Sleepless purple smudges darken his eyes and the beginnings of bruises can be seen high on his cheek and on the underside of his jaw.</p>
            </blockquote>





	A Prelude

**Author's Note:**

> post Shine a Light Reprise, pre Kindergarten Boyfriend  
> just a little, weird thing that i wrote a while ago. posting for the heck of it.   
> (fun fact: this was titled "jd is sad crazy trash" in my googledocs)

Veronica wakes from an unrestful sleep to a draft seeping in from her cracked window. She doesn’t remember having left it open and bolts up in a drowsy panic only to be met by the weight of an arm wrapped carefully around her middle. There’s a hazy moment of relief before she’s brought back to reality by the distinct press of a gun's muzzle against her back.

She swallows thickly but knows better than to move. “JD?” she whispers.

“Yeah.” 

She cranes her neck and catches a glimpse of him. He looks rough. Sleepless purple smudges darken his eyes and the beginnings of bruises can be seen high on his cheek and on the underside of his jaw. He’s without his trenchcoat, wearing only a thin t-shirt, and Veronica can’t help but note how small he looks without it. “JD, I don’t know what happened but- just put down the gun. Please.”

He laughs tiredly. “So quick to negotiate with the psycho now. I guess you’ve had a change of heart.”

Veronica chews on the inside of her cheek and speaks slowly, attempting to level with him, “That’s. You’re right, it’s unfair of me to ask but. You don’t need to forgive me or anything. Just, please, put the gun down. I won’t scream, I promise.”

JD makes a noise halfway between a snort and a sigh but Veronica feels the pressure on her back lessen. “I thought you would kick me out after what happened earlier. Or- I don’t know, call the cops.”

Veronica is quickly becoming tired of playing along, “So you decided to hold me hostage in my own room?”

“Save it, okay? It was dumb, I just. I was honestly hoping you wouldn’t wake up and I panicked. I just really need somewhere to stay for the night.” He sets his head on Veronica’s shoulder and holds her tighter. She tries not to shudder. The idle threat of the gun still in his other hand keeps her on edge.

“Why?”

JD exhales through his nose. “Dad wasn’t happy that I shot the TV,” he says, flatly.

Despite her suppressed anger and discomfort, Veronica feels something inside her chest clench. “Does he do this a lot?”

“Nah, it was an isolated incident. I kept baiting him even after the TV thing. Normally he’s just your garden-variety, semi-functional suburban drunk.”

“That’s still really not okay…”

JD buries his face in Veronica’s hair. “You don’t have to tell me that,” he mumbles. 

Veronica covers his hand with hers, an act that is half genuine caring and half a desperate attempt to calm him down. He isn’t shaking with rage like he had been when Veronica told him that she refused to be involved with any more murders, but there’s a tautness to his demeanor that makes her very nervous.

"You can stay if you need to, but could you please put the gun on the floor or something? It's wigging me out."

"Hmm? Oh right, I forgot about that," he replies sleepily, flipping the safety on and tossing the gun off the bed and onto the carpet.

Veronica breathes a sigh of relief. 

"Does this mean you forgive me?" JD asks, quietly. 

"No, JD. This is just for tonight. A one-time thing."

"Oh."

A long silence stretches between them and eventually JD’s obvious exhaustion catches up to him, his grip on Veronica loosening as his breaths become more even. Veronica drifts off soon after.

JD is gone when she wakes up.


End file.
